The X Factor (UK series 1)
The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent; the winner of which receives a £1 million recording contract with the Syco Music record label. The first series was broadcast from 4 September to 11 December 2004. The competition was split into several stages: auditions, bootcamp and live shows, with Simon Cowell, Sharon Osbourne, Louis Walsh as judges. It was won by JAT, who went on to have major chart success, as of 2013 they have earned 250 to 300 million sales worldwide, with runners-up Steve Brookstein who achieved some success. Walsh was the winning mentor. Selection process Applications and auditions Prior to the audition phase, advertisements appeared on ITV, in newspapers, and trade magazines, promising that the new show would encourage groups, and while the emphasis was on singing, would welcome those who played instruments and wrote their own songs. Thus the show would differetiate itself from its predecessor, Pop Idol. For the first episode of auditions, which aired 4 September 2004, the judges visited Leeds and London. For the second episode, which aired on 11 September 2004, the judges visited Newcastle. The third episode aired on 18 September 2004, the fourth on 25 September 2004 and the fifth on 2 October 2004. Bootcamp After the initial auditions, each judge was randomly allocated a category: *Simon Cowell: solo over-25s *Sharon Osbourne: solo 16–24s *Louis Walsh: groups Each judge chose twelve acts from their category to go through to round two — bootcamp. After bootcamp, each judge selected five acts to progress to round three — "judges' homes". The bootcamp episodes aired on 9 and 16 October 2004. Judges' homes In this round, the 15 acts (five for each judge) went to the "homes" of their respective judges, where they were interviewed and performed again. Each judge then chose three acts to go through to the finals (making a total of nine finalists, unlike later series, which would feature twelve). Live Shows Results summary Live Show details Week 1 (23 October) ;Judges' votes to eliminate * Osbourne: Voices with Soul * Walsh: Roberta Howett * Cowell: Roberta Howett Week 2 (30 October) ;Judges' votes to eliminate : * Walsh: Verity Keays * Cowell: 2 to Go * Osbourne: Verity Keays Week 3 (6 November) ;Judges' votes to eliminate : * Walsh: 2 to Go * Osbourne: 2 to Go * Cowell was not required to vote as there was already a majority Week 4 (13 November) ;Judges' votes to eliminate * Cowell: Voices with Soul * Osbourne: Voices with Soul * Walsh: Steve Brookstein Week 5 (20 November) ;Judges' votes to eliminate : * Osbourne refused to send home either of her acts * Walsh: Cassie Compton * Cowell: Cassie Compton Week 6 (27 November) This week did not feature a final showdown and instead the act with the fewest public votes, Rowetta Satchell, was automatically eliminated. Week 7: Semi-final (4 December) The semi-final did not feature a final showdown and instead the act with the fewest public votes, Tabby Callaghan, was automatically eliminated. Week 8: Final (11 December) *Themes: No theme; song of the series; winner's single